Reframing Latin America: A Cultural Theory Reading ... - BGSU Blogs

chapter 12
Civilized Folk Marry the Barbarians:
The Nationalist Nation
Introduction to DOÑA BÁRBARA
by Rómulo Gallegos 1
Rómulo Gallegos has much in common with Domingo Sarmiento. Both
were men of letters who became presidents of their respective countries,
and both left an intellectual legacy of continental proportions. The literary
works for which they are most famous, Facundo by Sarmiento and Doña
Bárbara by Gallegos, had similar objectives of defi ning and celebrating their
nation’s essence. But the vision of the nation which Gallegos promoted
shifted notably from that of Sarmiento’s generation of nineteenth-century
liberals. Whereas Sarmiento called for the destruction of barbarism, leaving
only a nostalgic reminder, Gallegos sought a fusion between society’s
so-called barbarian and civilized elements. This goal was indicative of his
generation’s nationalist vision of a transformative union between ruling
elites and popular masses.
Rómulo Gallegos (1884–1969) was born into a humble family in Caracas,
Venezuela. He discovered a passion for writing at an early age and published
his fi rst essay, “Lo que somos” (“What We Are”) at the age of nineteen. He
considered studying law but decided to pursue his love of writing. He cofounded
a weekly magazine and established himself as an essayist. He published
his fi rst novel, El último solar, in 1920, helping to solidify his literary
reputation. In addition to writing, Gallegos worked as a schoolteacher and
principal between 1912 and 1930.
Throughout much of his adult life, specifi cally between 1908 and 1935,
Venezuela was under the control of an oligarchic dictatorship run by
Juan Vicente Gómez. A classic caudillo from Venezuela’s mountainous interior,
Gómez rose steadily in the political ranks and eventually became